Rawan Osman

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Rawan Osman (Arabic: روان عثمان, born 1983 or 1984) is a Syrian-Lebanese peace activist, primarily focused on the developing of positive relationships between Middle Eastern Arabs and Jewish Israelis.

Life[edit]

Osman was born in Damascus.[1] Her father's family were Sunni Muslims from Damascus, first recorded in 1938, while her mother's family were Shiite Muslims from near Baalbek.[2] Osman grew up in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon,[3] though she returned to Syria after graduating high school.[1] She also lived in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.[3] In 2011, at the onset of the Syrian civil war, she moved to Strasbourg, France, to learn skills to open a wine bar in Damascus.[4][5] There, she met Jewish people for the first time while living in the city's Jewish quarter. These encounters forced her to reckon with the antisemitism she had been taught growing up.[6] She later attended Heidelberg University, in Heidelberg, Germany, where she studied Modern Hebrew and Jewish Studies.[2][3]

While living in Europe, Osman began advocating for antisemitism awareness and education in the Middle East and among the Middle Eastern diaspora.[4] She also advocates for multicultural acceptance in the Middle East, including acceptance of Israel and Israelis, and the condemnation of "the instigators of wars willing to sacrifice innocent life" and "those who exploit the Arab-Israeli conflict to fuel their political power".[2] To further this, she founded Arabs Ask, a forum meant for Arabs to ask questions and challenge preconceived notions about Judaism and Israel.[5] In the 2020s, she advocated for the signing of the Abraham Accords.[2]

While working with the Center for Peace Communications, Osman became involved with Sharaka.[3] In 2022 and 2023, she was part of Sharaka's Arab delegation to March of the Living, a Holocaust commemoration event in Poland.[3][7][8][9] She has also traveled to the United States with Sharaka, participating in community events.[10] She was criticzed by Arab social media users in January 2024 after posting videos of herself speaking to an IDF soldier and Avichay Adraee, a spokesman for the IDF.[11]

Osman has written a blog for The Times of Israel since September 2023.[12] She is also working on a book about Israel and Israelis.[1][8]

Personal life[edit]

Osman lives in Germany with her son.[9] She is a Sunni Muslim under Syrian law,[2] and identifies as an Arab Zionist.[5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Rawan Osman". The Washington Institute. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  2. ^ a b c d e Osman, Rawan. "My peoples, our children". Fathom. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  3. ^ a b c d e Schwartz, Yaakov (2022-04-28). "Muslim influencers visit Auschwitz, seek to bring truth of Holocaust to Arab world". The Times of Israel.
  4. ^ a b Osman, Rawan. "New Forms of Old Hate: Confronting Assad's Anti-Semitism in Germany". The Washington Institute. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  5. ^ a b c "'I am an Arab Zionist'". Jewish News Syndicate. 2024-01-08. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  6. ^ Osman, Rawan (2023-09-26). "My first encounter with Jews changed my life". The Times of Israel.
  7. ^ Isaac, David (2022-04-29). "In groundbreaking step, Muslim delegation participates in 2022 March of the Living". Jewish News Service.
  8. ^ a b Amouyal, Noa (2023-06-02). "Arab influencers embrace March of Living, welcomed by attendees". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  9. ^ a b Osman, Rawan (2023-06-06). "Holocaust Remembrance Counters the Axis of Resistance to Change in the Middle East". Jewish Journal. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  10. ^ Adgie, Joe (2023-12-03). "Arab-Israeli Group Calls for Peace in Marietta Talk". Marietta Daily Journal. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  11. ^ Abu Hindiyah, Amina (2024-01-08). "من هي روان عثمان التي ظهرت مع أفيخاي أدرعي المتحدث باسم الجيش الإسرائيلي؟". Cairo 24 (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  12. ^ "Rawan Osman at The Blogs". The Times of Israel.
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